What Does it Take to be a Top Hydro or Hort Salesperson?

Mac & Fulton Talent Partners has an extensive database of top-tier candidates for cannabis, hydroponics, and horticulture. Yet, as we have been in business for a number of years, certain job segments have proven a better fit for us than others. Of the fields within which we have conducted searches, horticulture and hydroponics sales jobs have become a primary focus of ours. 

One of our greatest skills at M&F Talent is locating Director-level and Managerial-level salespeople for clients in the horticulture and hydroponics industries. To this end, leading hort-tech companies in hydroponics supplies, horticultural lighting, environmental controls, greenhouse design, and cultivation mediums look to us when building their sales teams.

M&F Talent: Leading Recruiters for Horticulture and Hydroponics Jobs

There are multiple reasons why Mac & Fulton is the leading recruiting agency for horticulture and hydroponics salespeople. 

The fact that M&F Talent conducts recruiting across the diverse fields of cannabis, hemp, hydroponics, and horticulture speaks our ability to find leading sales professionals. Namely because, the most sought after salespeople in hydroponics and horticulture are those who can sell effectively to both cannabis producers and traditional CEA cultivators.

Because M&F Talent is well-versed at the nuances of technical staffing, we are able to decipher the requisite skillsets for successful salespeople. This notion is particularly true for hort-tech and ag-tech clientele. With a company background in engineering and technical writing, M&F Talent can seamlessly place difficult to locate salespeople with hort-tech clients. 

For those of you interested in finding a horticulture or hydroponics sales job, or those looking to hire the right employee, here are some great criteria for understanding what it takes to find success in these roles: 

Business to Business Sales

Horticulture and hydroponics salespeople operate exclusively within the realm of business to business (B2B) sales. According to the National Association of Sales Professionals website, “B2B sales are often more complex than B2C (business to consumer) sales. Not only do B2B salespeople often sell to professional buyers who are trained to get the best possible deal, they also often have to sell to teams of decision-makers, all of whom must be convinced that this product is the best.”

Horticulture and hydroponics sales positions generally focus on three primary avenues for distributing goods: retail partners, distributor networks, direct to growers. Managing these extremely diverse customer bases is not an easy chore. Because, beyond the general challenges that come with B2B sales, each of these verticals has unique demands specific to the horticulture space. 

For starters, retail hydro store clients are generally concerned with how well products will appeal to small-scale, hobbyist growers. Conversely, direct to grower sales will focus heavily on the technical attributes of products and deal heavily in concepts such as Return on Investment (ROI). Finally, selling to distributor networks resembles a blending of retail and direct to growers approaches – with a focus on the bottom line as well as appeal to end-users.

Success in horticulture and hydroponics sales jobs is largely dictated by your ability to navigate these diverse customer channels. In the end, you must be able to “speak the language” of retail stores, commercial producers, and distributor networks. Similarly, you must build relationships with critical decision-makers across these verticals. 

Technical Sales 

The realm of technical sales is where horticulture and hydroponics salespeople really stand out from other sales teams. 

Most horticulture and hydroponics salespeople are well-versed in technical sales because they are able to explain the technical attributes of their products. Moreover, oftentimes they must explain how their product can alleviate the pain-points of commercial growers.

Looking specifically at hort-tech like grow lights, there is a large learning curve in understanding how these technical products function. This notion is heightened when attempting to explain such complex notions as PAR light and the Inverse Square Law to potential customers. Even more, beyond explaining how horticultural lighting works, these same salespeople must explain how the lights will affect the profitability of the overall operation. 

While a formal science background is not always a pre-requisite for a job in horticulture and hydroponics equipment sales, it is very helpful. If you don’t have a degree in Horticulture or Biology, you must educate yourself on these products so you can properly explain them to your potential customers. 

Travel for Horticulture and Hydroponics Sales Jobs

Sales positions in hydroponics and horticulture almost always require extensive travel. That being said, if you are interested in getting a sales job in one of these fields, be prepared to travel for over 50% of the year. Needless to say, it takes a certain type of personality to hold up to the demands of such a challenging travel schedule. For most, this process requires a careful balance between personal lives and professional obligations

Especially looking at direct to grower sales, in-person meetings are often vital in closing deals. Largely because, these deals often venture into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Even more, clients want to know that they will be “taken care of” should anything go wrong with the product in question.

In order to build trust with potential customers and maintain relationships with established ones, horticultural salespeople must have the flexibility in their schedules to travel extensively. 

Summary 

M&F Talent has worked hard to become the leading recruiting service for horticulture and hydroponics sales professionals. To this end, we are excited to share our hardwon knowledge with our network. Whether you are looking to hire new sales talent, or are interested in finding a hort-tech sales job, we are here to help.

 

If you are interested in discussing hort and hydro sales careers in more detail, please reach out to info@mandfconsultants.com.